South
Florida enters its first full season in
Conference USA riding an unprecedented crest
of confidence following a 9-2 campaign in
2002. Although the loss of Marquel Blackwell
will certainly be felt, Jim Leavitt has
built one of the fastest-rising programs
in the country at USF. This season, facing
a souped-up conference schedule and without
their top playmakers on both offense and
defense, will be the Bulls' greatest test,
and also their greatest opportunity.

Will
USF be a one-year wonder, like Fresno State,
Bowling Green, or Tulane? Or can the Bulls
maintain their success in an increasingly-strong
Conference USA, altering the balance of
power in the talent-rich state of Florida?

If
the Bulls' cream-puff schedule has anything
to do with the question, the answer will
be a resounding yes. Aside from a revenue-influenced
trip to face Alabama in the season opener,
there is not a game on the schedule the
Bulls cannot win. The other non-conference
games are against I-AA squads Nicholls State
and Charleston Southern.

In
conference, USF hosts Louisville, TCU, and
Cincinnati. The most challenging game on
the schedule, and a possible de facto conference
championship match up, comes October 25,
when the Bulls travel to Hattiesburg, Miss.,
to face Southern Mississippi. Young leadership
will make it a challenge for either side
of the ball to perform consistently, making
week-to-week predictions impossible for
what these young men will deliver. We should
know by mid-season if this team has a winning
season in them or not. All bets are off

After
four years of the Marquel Blackwell era, South
Florida must look to the future. The future begins
now - the team will be built around one of the
top offensive lines in the south. All five starters
return after paving the way for more than 134
ground yards per game in 2002. Even better for
the rapidly improving Bulls, only one of those
players, left tackle Derrick Sarosi, is a senior.
Two - right guard Chris Carothers and left guard
Shelly Houston - are sophomores who entered the
starting lineup as redshirt freshman and shone
brightly into the USF future.

Under head coach Jim Leavitt, South Florida has
used a spread, four-wide offense with a one-back
backfield. With the graduation of Blackwell and
three of his top five wide receivers, a philosophical
change could be in the offing, with the Bulls
eschewing their former pass-happy style in favor
of a grind-it-out approach featuring the quality
offensive line and junior tailback Clinton Crossley.
Passing success would develop balance which would
make them that much more offensively potent.

Crossley, entering his third year as the Bulls'
top back, would relish an increase in his role.
Overshadowed by the dual-threat capabilities of
Blackwell, Crossley totaled just 180 carries in
his first two seasons. If given the opportunity,
the tough and durable Crossley could play a much
larger role. Senior Vince Brewer, a sporadic starter
during his USF career, would also benefit from
increased opportunities in the offense. And, with
Crossley, the duo could provide a quality one-two
punch. Senior DeJuan Green, a former Georgia transfer,
could also find himself in the mix. This position's
progress should be an accurate offensive barometer
in analyzing USF's 2003 efforts.

A more conservative offense would have the benefit
of keeping a suspect and inexperienced defense
off the field. We hope this is an obtuse statement
in hindsight, but its truth could be foreboding.

Quarterback Ronnie Banks has almost everything
going for him. The 6-3 junior has a strong arm,
three seasons of experience in the Bulls' system,
and the momentum of a solid performance in spring
ball. Nevertheless, Banks faces the biggest challenge
of any player on the team - fill the enormous
shoes of Marquel Blackwell, the player who almost
single-handedly put USF on the map. Few, if any,
players in the country meant more to their teams
than Blackwell to the 9-2 Bulls.

Banks is not Blackwell, and he will not be called
upon to play the same role. Banks is a dropback
passer, less agile than his athletic predecessor,
meaning that the Bulls could look to add more
vertical routes to their already elaborate spread
offense. As long as Banks can play within himself
and let his teammates play their role, the Bulls
should be able to withstand the loss of Blackwell
with little negative impact.

USF will also have to replace three of its top
six wideouts, including leading receiver Hugh
Smith. The player with the biggest role adjustment
to make will be senior Huey Whittaker, who was
the team's number two guy. He will have to do
without both the presence of Smith, who forced
opposing defenses to account for him every play,
and the added wrinkle caused by Blackwell's athleticism.
The other returning starter at the position is
senior Elgin Hicks, the Bulls' fourth receiver.

The new starters - senior Allynson Sheffield and
junior Brian Fisher - each have plenty of experience,
but may be rusty. Sheffield missed six 2002 games,
while Fisher missed two, with a variety of injuries.
If the duo can stay healthy, they would be solid
third and fourth options. If either one is sidelined,
senior Chris Iskra is the most likely candidate
to step into the lineup. The position has promise,
but development is its own winning reward if this
group can excel.

WR
Chris Iskra

SOUTH
FLORIDA 2003 DEPTH CHARTReturning Starters in bold

OFFENSE

QB

Ronnie
Banks-Jr (6-3, 230)

Jean Julmiste-Fr / David Mullins-So

RB

Clenton
Crossley-Jr (5-10, 210)

Vince
Brewer-Sr / Billy Henderson-So

WR

Huey
Whittaker-Sr (6-5, 225)

Brian
Fisher-Jr (5-9, 180)

WR

Chris
Iskra-Sr (6-1, 190)

Quinton
Callum-So (5-11, 205)

WR

Elgin
Hicks-Sr (5-11, 180)

Darren
Haliburton-Fr (6-3, 205)

TE

Mark
Feldman-Jr (6-4, 245)

Will
Bleakley-Fr (6-3, 230)

OT

Derrick
Sarosi-Jr (6-6, 295)

Frank
Davis-So (6-4, 310)

OG

Shelly
Houston-So (6-3, 295)

Devon
Small-Jr (6-3, 280)

C

Alex
Herron-Jr (6-3, 280)

John
Miller-So (6-2, 265)

OG

Chris
Carothers-So (6-3, 290)

Mark
Sepcik-Jr (6-4, 280)

OT

Levi
Newton-Jr (6-4, 305)

David
Bailey-Fr (6-5, 305)

K

Santiago
Gramatica-Jr (5-10, 165)

..

2003
DEFENSE

written
by Collin Mickle

The
strength of the Bulls' defense will be in their
secondary, which returns three starters, along
with sophomore nickelback D'Juan Brown. The leader
of the unit, statistically and otherwise, is senior
free safety J. R. Reed. Reed, the team's top returning
tackler (his 95 stops were good for second on
the team), also tied for the team lead with five
INTs from his centerfield spot. The other INT
leader was senior cornerback Ron Hemingway, a
shutdown corner with good speed and rapidly improving
skills.

Joining Hemingway in the lineup will be Brown,
who had an interception and seven passes defended
in limited duty off the bench. The fourth member
of the secondary is strong safety Kevin Verpaele,
a physical player who can confidently play close
to the line of scrimmage (eight tackles for loss
in 2002) and make an impact in pass coverage.

The other strong suit for the Bulls will be at
linebacker. Although middle linebacker Kawika
Mitchell (2nd round, Kansas City) departed, two
capable starters return on the outside in seniors
Maurice Jones and Courtney Davenport. Jones is
entering his third year as a starter on the strong
side, where he recorded 14 stops for loss. 2002
was the first year in the starting lineup for
Davenport, an explosive physical force who, if
healthy, should follow Mitchell's footsteps into
the NFL.

The newcomer in the lineup is talented sophomore
Devon Davis, who backed up Mitchell as a true
freshman and is preparing to replace him in the
middle in 2003. Davis played well in the spring,
but could still give up the job to senior Julian
Johnson, currently the top reserve behind Jones
on the strongside. Any way you slice it, they
come up with talent and depth.

The defensive weak spot, though, for USF will
be up front, where all four starters from 2002
must be replaced. Defensive end Shurron Pierson
(4th round, Oakland) will leave the largest void.
Replacing Pierson's contribution on the stat sheet
will be a group effort (and then some), but replacing
him on the field will fall to sophomore Terrence
Royal, who was impressive in his freshman season
despite playing behind Pierson and left end Chris
Daley.

The other defensive end will be junior Tim Jones.
As a sophomore, Jones was a super-sub, recording
five sacks despite not starting a game and often
playing only in obvious passing situations. It
remains to be seen whether he can adjust physically
to the grind of starting full-time and the run-stopping
that comes with playing every-down. Junior Matt
Groelinger moves to NT, despite being incredibly
undersized for the position at 255 pounds. Groelinger
benefits from his relentless work ethic and his
deceptive speed (he was timed as the Bulls' fastest
d-lineman, running a 5.1 40-yard dash). Senior
Cedric Battles will compete with classmate Lee
Roy Selmon, Jr., who is trying to make a comeback
from two injury-plagued seasons.

LB
Maurice Jones

SOUTH
FLORIDA 2003 DEPTH CHARTReturning Starters in bold

DEFENSE

DE

Tim
Jones-Jr (6-3, 225)

Jon
Simmons-So (6-5, 235)

NT

Lee
Roy Selmon-Sr (5-11, 280)

Howard
Campbell-Jr (6-2, 275)

DT

Cedric
Battles-Sr (6-4, 270)

Kenny
Huebner-So (6-3, 260)

DE

Terrence
Royal-So (6-3, 240)

Craig
Kobel-Jr (6-2, 255)

SLB

Maurice
Jones-Sr (6-3, 245)

Stephen
Nicholas-Fr (6-3, 215)

MLB

Devon
Davis-So (6-3, 225)

Vincent
Capogna-So (5-11, 210)

WLB

Courtney
Davenport-Sr (6-1, 220)

Julian
Johnson-Sr (5-11, 200)

CB

D'Juan
Brown-So (5-11, 175)

Antonio
Warren-Jr (6-1, 180)

CB

Ron
Hemingway-Sr (5-11, 175)

Sidney
Simpson-Jr (5-9, 175)

SS

Kevin
Verpaele-Sr (6-0, 195)

Johnnie
Jones-Jr (6-2, 195)

FS

J.R.
Reed-Sr (5-11, 200)

Javan
Camon-Jr (6-0, 175)

P

Brandon
Baker-So (6-2, 200)

..

2003
SPECIAL TEAMS

Kicker
Santiago Gramatica, brother of the NFL's Bill and Martin,
returns as the Bulls' placekicker. Gramatica, a semi-finalist
for the 2002 Lou Groza Award, hit 16-of-21 attempts,
but was just 1-of-3 from beyond 40 yards.

Sophomore punter Brandon Baker must replace three-year
starter Devin Sanderson. Baker, who punted just twice,
must improve his distance (29 yard average) and hang
time to hang onto his job.

Brian Fisher, who backed up DeAndrew Rubin and Hugh
Smith at the punt and kick returner spots, is expected
to move into both roles. Fisher had only one kick return
and two punt returns last season, but showed flashes
of his ability with a 66-yarder on a punt return against
Florida Atlantic. D'Juan Brown could also see time as
a KR.